For propagating European culture through ballroom dancing, he has received letters of appreciation from Queen Elizabeth II and Charles, Prince of Wales. Meet Mumbai-based twenty-something Sandip Soparrkar, teacher extraordinaire of ballroom dancing and promoter-proprietor of the Sandip Soparrkar Ballroom Studio, the only one of its type in India.

A commerce, hotel management and business management graduate of Symbiosis University, Soparr-kar began his career as a public relations professional in Pune. “I was always interested in studying dance, but in India at that time, it was not considered a suitable career option for men,” recalls Soparrkar.

Thus he began dancing as a hobby, learning the intricacies of ballroom dancing from Ewa Maria, a former European ballroom champion. After a ten-year association with her, in 1999 he acquired certification from the Ballroom Dance Teachers’ Training School in Bonn, Germany, becoming the only Indian in the school to successfully graduate from this institution.

Returning to India and Mumbai specifically in mid 2001, Soparrkar began dancing with his friend, former model and actress, Kitu Gidwani as partner. “It was then that a mutual friend suggested I teach ballroom dancing,” says Soparrkar. Accepting the advice, he promoted a dance studio in Andheri, Mumbai and was soon inundated with students. He currently teaches a two-month course.

Soparrkar’s repertoire comprises Latin American ballroom dances such as the rumba, samba, the cha cha cha, jive and paso doble. He also teaches conventional ballroom dancing such as the waltz, the Viennese waltz, the foxtrot, quick step and tango.

Moreover Soparrkar’s studio is the first in India to receive exclusive rights to send entries to two famous international dance festivals — Dance Grand Prix Italia and the Prague Festival — for the Latin American ballroom category.

And with the cinema and entertainment industries booming there’s little time for leisure activities. Recently Soparrkar signed a contract to teach Femina Miss India contestants dance appreciation to familiarise them with western classical dance. Simultaneously he is choreogra-phing for several Bollywood movies such as The Rising and Kyon Ho Gaya Na. “The dances I choreograph must have a classical base, otherwise I don’t accept the assignment,” says Soparrkar emphatically.

Soparrkar does not intend to rest on his laurels. “I want to continue to spread awareness about ballroom dancing throughout India.” With this in mind, he plans to open dance studios across the country. So put on your dancing shoes — Sandip Soparrkar is coming your way!

Mona Barbhaya (Mumbai)

Siddharth Nagarajan 

Like most boys his age, Chennai-based Siddharth Nagarajan (7) is a live wire, constantly disturbing the furniture at home while playing pranks. What’s different about him is his wonderful talent with the drums, a talent which has earned him an entry into the Limca Book Of Records 2003 and 2004 as ‘The Youngest Drummer of India’.

Barely the height of the drums he plays, the Limca Book citation apart, Siddharth has bagged over a dozen other awards including the Wisdom International Child Prodigy Award 2004 (which he will receive in December), the IWA (International Women’s Association) 2004 Award, the Samaikkya Bharath Gaurav Satkar Award 2003 (Ugadi Puraskar) and Bhartiya Gaurav Award 2003. Equally impressive are the title descriptives to his name — ‘Prince of Rhythm’, ‘Wonder Boy’, and ‘Balamani’ conferred recently by the Bharat Vikas Parishad.

The early fame and honour that have come his way, have left Siddharth quite untouched. “I love to play the drums and practice whenever I want to, sometimes even for five hours at a time,” he says while drumming expertly.

Born into a family of musicians — his father Nagarajan is a well known percussionist, his mother Vidya is a light music singer and his elder sister Dhanusri a carnatic vocalist — musical talent comes naturally to Siddharth. He began displaying a sense of rhythm when he was just a one-and-a-half year old, while fiddling with his father’s drumset. To encourage him, Nagarajan ordered a custom-made set of drums suitable for his age and began training him. At the age of three- and-a-half Siddharth gave his first 12-minute solo performance at the Thiruverkadu temple in Chennai and won everyone’s heart. In 2000, he was initiated into the art by the famed drummer Sivamani and later joined Drum Alayam where he was formally trained by drummer Gopal.

After that there was no stopping this child prodigy. At age five, Siddharth went on an all-India tour organised by TVS Electronics and gave solo performances across south India. This was followed by a performance at the Indian Film Festival in Malaysia in 2003, and later, the Sacred Rhythm Festival conducted by ghatam maestro Vikku Vinayakram in 2004 in Chennai. He also gave a solo performance at the FMCG Awards function in New Delhi this year. “He now does around 70 shows a year, for corporates, radio and television and others who invite him. In August, he was invited by His Holiness Jayendra Saraswathi of Kancheepuram to perform on his 70th birthday,” says his mother Vidya, who accompanies him everywhere.

Despite being so young Siddharth (a class II student of Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan School, Chennai) is clear about his goals — it’s the Guinness World Records next.

Hemalatha Raghupathi (Chennai)